On the other side of the entrance arch, a 'yan' (ยันต์) diagram engraving:
The loops allow for the design to be drawn in a single continuous line when drawing it on paper or cloth or tattooing onto skin.
Elephant & monkey presenting offerings to the Buddha:
There are different depictions of the Buddha for each day of the week, with two for Wednesday, & this is the one for Wednesday night. It comes from the story of the monks of Kosambi - an elephant & a monkey took care of the Buddha when, upset over disagreements between two groups of his disciples, he retreated into the forest for solitude. The monkey is shown offering a honeycomb, while the elephant is usually shown offering a bowl of fruit...though the cat has seen versions where the elephant is offering lotus flowers, & here it can't figure out what on earth the elephant is holding in its trunk...
Naga eave bracket:
Door panels:
Lord Brahma sitting on his mount, a hongsa bird:
Chinese refer to him as 四面佛 (four-faced 'Buddha'), even though he is not a Buddha but a Hindu god. For this reason he is always found outside in a shrine of his own (this temple has one) rather than within any of the temple buildings.
1 comment:
well i read, that the 四面佛 reside in a heaven of his own, and because he is a proud god. and also the need to see all 4 directions, his shrine is always kind of a open affair.
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